Japanese Carriers

Feng Shui?

 

Okay, their master plan was for a two or four carrier system where a carrier with the right-side island would always be matched with a left-side island carrier. When engaging in takeoffs and landings, the right side island carrier would have a landing/takeoff pattern that went counter-clockwise while the left-side island carrier would have a clockwise pattern. This way, with the counterclockwise pattern to the left and clockwise to the right operations would not interfere with each other even if in fairly close quarters.

It was a case of something that sounded good in theory but was disaster in practice. The natural tendency, even for pilots who didn't learn to fly on right-island carriers, was for them to pull off to the left if they missed a landing. This of course was disasterous if the island was located to the left.

 

The British tried the same thing earlier and ran into the same problem. I thing there was even a carrier with two islands and a bridge between them! I forget which nation UK or Japan I think.

 

Does anyone have Japanese-source material confirming this right-left teamwork idea? I've seen it in plenty of Western publications, but I've never seen anything close to the source.

 

No. There are, sadly, very few Japanese books on the IJN in WW2. Given how little is taught in Japanese schools about the war, though, it is perhaps understandable.